Dear Old Stockholm is one of the lesser known albums from Coltrane's time at the Impulse! lable. Featuring a modified version of his classic quartet including McCoy Tyner on piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass, and Roy Haynes sitting for an absent Elvin Jones on drums. Never one to be lacking in passionate, breathtaking performances Coltrane, sticking exclusively to tenor on this cd, displays his full range as a musician. From the tender "After the Rain" and soulful "Dear Lord", through his straight ahead take on an old chestnut from his days with Miles Davis "Dear Old Stockholm", to the churning, fearsome, firey roar of "One Down, One Up" and "After the Crescent" 'Trane puts on a full display of the steely tone, superhuman endurance, and obsessivly honed technique that helped make him an icon. In the cd liner notes, Roy Haynes speaks of how much he enjoyed playing with Coltrane, and how he felt challenged to keep him inspired and not let him down. Haynes delivers. His drumming is, at times, almost as powerful as Coltrane's tenor, this is one of his greatest moments on record. As always McCoy Tyner's piano is lyrical and inspired. His dense chording, coupled with Garrison's throbbing, pulsing basswork providing the flexible evolving framework neccessary to keep Coltrane and Haynes flying on the intense tracks. Tyner also displays his ballad touch with a lovely solo on "Dear Lord". This cd is one of contrasts. It has equal parts of tenderness and ferocity and is one of the best, if lesser known sessions from the early phase of Coltrane's final creative period. A definate must for fans of late period Coltrane.

The tracks on this cd were recorded in 1963 and 1965, with Roy Haynes on drums sitting in for Elvin Jones. And what a difference a drummer makes! This is not better (Elvis WAS of course the ultimate Coltrane-drummer), but the music takes new and unexpected turns, backed by Haynes' crisp, intelligent playing. The 1963-track "After the Rain" is essential Trane in its quiet, visionary majesty. The two long, rather too similar 1965-tracks "One Down, One Up" and "After the Crescent" set new levels of intensity and find Coltrane at the brink of his late, screaming sound. Somehow McCoy Tyner seems to benefit more from Haynes' playing than Coltrane. The interplay between Tyner and Haynes on these two long tracks is stunning and Tyners' solos are intensely powerful. "Dear Lord" is again quiet and serenely beautiful. 4½ stars.

Recorded on two seperate occasions in 1963 and 1965 with replacement drummer Roy Haynes, while Quartet regular Elvin Jones was in rehab, this is a fine addition for any Coltrane collector. Though Jones' trademark thunder is absent, Haynes adds a tight finesse to the typically wild Quartet sound. The material is strong throughout, especially "Dear Old Stockholm" and the serene "After the Rain". The frenetic "One Down,One Up" and "After the Crescent" (both recorded during the 1965 session) evoke the kindred mayhem of Coltrane's "Sun Ship" recordings made that year and suffer many of the same problems of his work of that period. Unquestionably, the high point here is the albums swan song "Dear Lord". Perhaps the saddest song Trane ever performed; understated and wonderfully blue, it reminds us that beyond his legacy as avant garde explorer he was first and foremost a master of melody and lyricism.

Dear God, i can't stop listening to john coltrane albums! i've been on a two week bender now. lost my job. my car was repossessed. yesterday the old lady took off, saying, "you care about that old saxophone player more than you care about me!" and, Lord help me, she was right. "don't let the door hit you in that nasty behind of yours, on the way out," was all that i shouted back, as i cranked up the stereo even louder. the album playing was another of his classic Impulse releases, "dear old stockholm," from sessions made in 1963 and 1965. what a great album, man. the title track, which is first up, had me laughing and dancing, then comes the beautiful "after the rain," and i'm like crying my butt off. but "one down, one up," brings me right back up. all that emotional coltrane energy pouring into my soul, like a drug, baby. i am soooo addicted, it's not funny. "after the crescent" is more fire-music, more of trane's soul served up hot and fresh. and then the last track "Dear Lord," has me weeping like a little child again. such a gorgeous ballad. each note as pretty as a woman's behind. man, i need help! i love this music, but i have to pay the bills, have to do something else besides listening to trane all day and all night. still, with that said, hear i sit, listening to "Like Sonny," and all that i can really think about is what coltrane masterpiece am i going to listen to next?

What is it about John Coltrane that sparks such heated arguments one way or the other? I don't know that there's an answer to that, even in light of the simple fact of Jazz being such a complex form of music, and the accountability of personal likes and dislikes when deciding what is palatable. Or maybe it's just that Trane brings out the music critic in everyone, for better or for worse. I can't account for everyone's tastes, I myself like to some degree 95% of Coltrane's immense catalog, (or at least what I've heard!) but "Dear Old Stockholm" is accessible a work as you're gonna get from the master. Minus Elvin Jones on drums (Roy Haynes replaces) the classic crew is present (Tyner and Garrison) and as usual other worldly. 5 no nonsense tracks make up this offering, and it's clearly all killer, no filler. Trane novices may recognize the sweet "After The Rain" and one of my favorite JC tracks, ever, "Dear Lord" from the "Gentle Side Of John Coltrane" release, a greatest hits collection. It's always good to get those original albums though, and "Stockholm" is one of my favorites and a JC Impulse release. Besides the ballads, the bop is evident on the blazing and timeless "One Down, One Up" as Roy drives the quartet as ably as Elvin, no easy task. A well rounded addition to any level of jazz enthusiast's collection, "Dear Old Stockholm" is a perfect slice of the Coltrane pie.